Crave To Conquer (Myth of Omega, #1)(10)
Cailyn blinked at him. “The Records Keep?”
“Yes, in Ashens. They keep all important records for the Eastern Lands,” Drocco said, settling into his chair. “It’s one of the reasons why Ashens is the most influential territory in the East. I have yet to visit it but I knew my investigations would take me there eventually.” He frowned. “I’m sure you would’ve been there before.”
“A few times yes.” She stood thinking for a moment. “I don’t mind going on my own if you have things to do.”
“We will go at midday,” Drocco said, ending the conversation.
Cailyn nodded slowly before going back to her work.
***
In the carriage on the way to the Records Keep, Cailyn was restless. She wouldn’t look at him, barely spoke to him, and subtly fidgeted in the seat opposite. Drocco simply watched her. She was like a pet that needed to be soothed. She had snapped at him the previous afternoon and seemed to have a looser hold on her tongue since he entered the research room that morning. Something about the trip was making her apprehensive, but he couldn’t figure out what. After watching her for a few minutes, he stopped caring. Her curly hair was up today, exposing her slim neck and showing off her neckline and shoulders. Every time she moved he wanted to bite every inch of exposed flesh, suck on her, lick her… a thrill went through him at the thought of her response—the breathy sounds she would utter, her moans and whispers. As his eyes traveled down her body, stopping at every curve he could almost see that he wanted to explore, he noticed her knees were pressed tightly together. He glanced up at her but she was staring fixedly out of the carriage window. He suppressed a dark smile.
The Records Keep stood in the center of Ashens. Tall and cream-colored, with elegant swirls engraved into its walls, it was surrounded by equally sophisticated buildings important to the running of Ashens, but not all of them had survived the Lox invasion as well as the Records Keep. It seemed the King of Ashens had been particularly precious about making his city look bland and boring. Drocco found the broken jagged buildings that had suffered the effects of battle to be more interesting. Redesigning his Empire to look strong and powerful was something he looked forward to.
A number of emerald-robed record keepers nervously greeted him and his traveling party, all gathered at the entrance of the Keep at his arrival.
“Greetings, your Imperial Majesty,” each of them murmured as they bowed low. They all seemed to look the same with pale skin and blond hair, and all were Betas.
One of them rose first, an older man with slanted eyes and a neat, gray beard. “I am Head Keeper Galan,” he said. “We are honored to have you visit, Emperor. Would you like a tour of the Keep?”
“No,” Drocco said. “I want a guide.”
“I would be happy to assist you with anything you need, your Imperial Majesty,” the keeper said, bowing again.
“I want the records on the population count of the Eastern Lands over the last four hundred years.”
The keeper nodded. He led them through the quiet building, up a few flights of stairs, and along a number of slim corridors. Bookshelves and filing cabinets made up most of the interior with a number of windows punctuated throughout to let in natural light. They passed a number of gray-robed clerks filing large piles of parchment or scribbling intensely on desks tucked away in slightly obscured corners. A peaceful silence swamped the building that made even their muffled footsteps on the carpet seem too loud. Finally, the keeper arrived at a long room with windows along one wall and floor-to-ceiling shelves on the other.
“All population count results are kept here,” the keeper said. “We knew that you might soon be interested in information about Omegas, so we cataloged some information specifically for you, your Imperial Majesty.”
“Information like what?” Drocco asked, his interest peaked.
“Mainly information about birth rates of different dynamics, jobs Omegas tended to thrive in, the number of bonded partners, rare dynamic variants, that kind of thing.”
“Do you have that information readily available?”
The head keeper nodded. “Of course, follow me.”
“I’ll stay and look at these documents, if that’s all right, Emperor?” Cailyn interjected.
He nodded. “Compare them to my data.” He signaled to his guards to stay with Cailyn and followed the head keeper.
As they climbed the stairs a few floors, the head keeper explained how the Records Keep worked. The previous four Kings of Ashens hired clerks who spread far and wide into the Eastern Lands and, over the years, recorded their observations in an objective, methodical manner. Sometimes they were given specific information to collect, other times they were told to explore or investigate, while others recorded things by chance, but all were sent back to the Records Keep for filing and recording. The recently deceased King of Ashens made a point of always keeping up-to-date with all of the records, and that was how he became the most powerful ruler in the Eastern Lands—he simply knew more than most of the other territories combined and could choose to interfere in ways they didn’t understand.
Drocco found it illuminating. He listened carefully, interjecting questions where necessary to form a complete picture of the value of the Records Keep. He had been keeping his records in a muddled mess of information, but the King of Ashens had turned it into a weapon. And without spilling blood. For the first time, he felt a glimmer of admiration toward the Beta king. Even though the man had made many unwise choices, his use of this facility was not one of them.